


Slightly Cranky

by Therapy_Notes



Series: A Fine Mind and A Good Heart [2]
Category: Boy Meets World, Girl Meets World
Genre: Canon Compliant, Established Relationship, Friendship, Love, M/M, Opposites Attract, Post-Canon, Sweet Eric
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-05
Updated: 2020-12-12
Packaged: 2021-03-10 04:00:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,960
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27897937
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Therapy_Notes/pseuds/Therapy_Notes
Summary: Live Simply. Be Happy.Set after Slightly Crazy.
Relationships: Jack Hunter/Eric Matthews (Boy Meets World)
Series: A Fine Mind and A Good Heart [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2042839
Comments: 13
Kudos: 58





	1. Lean On Me

Jack was slowly starting to love mornings. Or at least hate them less.

Before, he was just some corporate asshole who would fume outwardly at having been served coffee that was slightly sweeter than it normally was despite his order always being the same every time.

Back then, he had not cared one way or another whether he hurt the person responsible for the inconvenience of overly sweet coffee.

_“It’s coffee! It’s supposed to be bitter!”_ He would grumble, his voice raised enough to attract the attention of the other patrons in the café.

He used to loathe mornings. It was something ingrained deep inside of him, a feeling he tried to shake over and over again by forcing himself to appreciate the pink-yellow beauty of sunrise.

But disappointment and resentment ruled him constantly. Whether it was disappointing coffee or a disappointing meeting that did not go the way he’d expected it to go, disappointment, when he felt it, would cloud over any sense of momentary peace or positivity he’d felt that day. It sucked, quite frankly. He had never known how to look on the bright side. He was not the kind of person who could be happy without a specific reason to which he could attribute the happiness.

Eric, on the other hand, could find joy in nothing at all. Eric woke up happy. When the soft blue light of day would peek through the thick dark blackout curtains that Jack had insisted that they buy, which now covered the large window in their bedroom, Eric would stir next to him and then stretch noisily before relaxing back into his pillow.

Turning around in Jack’s arms, Eric would then blink his eyes open and upon seeing Jack’s face, lined with sleep, smile like someone had just instructed him to take a large sum of money to the bank and deposit it, that someone trusted him enough to do so. Eric couldn’t really do his happy dance while in bed, but every time he woke up and saw the slightly grumpy expression on Jack’s face, Eric would smile and shake and snuggle up close to him like he could not believe that Jack was there.

“You’ve got that meeting today, right?” he mumbled into Jack’s shoulder. “You still nervous?”

For a moment, Jack didn’t say anything, because the truth of the matter was, he _was_ nervous, but he was trying not to let something that hadn’t even happened yet ruin his morning.

“A little,” he said eventually. He tightened his arms around Eric and then absently rubbed circles over his bare back. “After yesterday though, I’m probably about 14 percent less nervous than I was two days ago.”

“Gosh, man. For real?” said Eric excitedly, pulling away so he could see him. “It worked?”

Jack grinned, thinking about the weirdness that’d taken place the night before.

“Like I said, 14 percent.”

Eric’s smile grew even wider, as he threw the covers off of them and scrambled out of bed. “Come on. I’ll make you breakfast.”

Surprise crossed Jack’s face. “You’re going to make breakfast?”

“Yes,” said Eric, slipping on a pair of sweatpants. “This is a big day for you. You need to start the day right. And the key to starting the day right is a good hearty breakfast.”

Jack sat up and reached for the comforter, pulling it back over himself so that it covered him up to his neck. He watched Eric disappear out of their bedroom and then closed his eyes.

Last night was perhaps one of the strangest experiences he’d ever had. Actually, thinking back on it, every weird experience in his life had always involved Eric in one way or another. It was about six o’clock in the evening when he had arrived home to find Eric sitting at their dining room table, still dressed in his stiff navy-colored business suit. It would not be an odd sight if he had not known Eric to shed his business suit two seconds after stepping foot in their house. The one time Jack had gotten home from work and plopped down on the couch next to a barely-dressed Eric, only five minutes had passed before Eric said, _“Dude, we’re home. Why are you still wearing pants?”_

So, walking into their home to see Eric fully dressed, in a crisp suit no less, had been a little jarring for Jack to say the least.

“Eric, what—” he’d started.

“Hello, Mr. Matthews,” Eric had said stiffly. “Have a seat.”

For a significant amount of time, Jack had only stared, glued to the spot by their front door. It had taken Eric saying, “Have a seat”, several times before Jack moved to slowly walk towards the dining room. He had pulled out the chair opposite Eric and sat, his movements noticeably glacial. What the heck is happening? Jack’s mind had screamed at him. He had never seen Eric look that serious.

“I got your email,” said Eric.

“Wha—” Jack had said breathily, as he freaked out internally. “What are you talking about? Eric, what email? I didn’t send you an email. Is everything okay?”

“I must say, you got my attention. You made my normally mundane morning an interesting one, indeed. Which is why I set up this meeting,” continued Eric. “I would not have given you this opportunity to present your case in person otherwise.”

Jack’s hands rubbed his knees nervously to stop them from bouncing. “Eric, can you please stop whatever this is and tell me what’s going on?”

“Mr. Matthews, I am shocked by how unprepared you are for this meeting,” said Eric, frowning. “You sent me an email. One thousand words written on why you think you would be suited for another position in the company. A position that is of a lower grade. One that pays less, and that is normally given to recent college graduates looking to work their way up to the position you are in currently.”

Suddenly, it had dawned on Jack that Eric was attempting to role-play his upcoming meeting with his boss, the meeting where he would explain why he was choosing to step down from his highly stressful job working for the evil water-polluting goblin company. It had been something that had come up more than once since he and Eric reunited that day and he’d spilled his guts to Eric while sitting in the middle of Topanga’s, and then similarly while in bed with him the day after. The two of them had talked and talked and talked about the issue, Eric supporting him in all things, every decision that he made, every day. Even though he had continued to work in a job that made him unhappy, he tried not to let what he did during the day seep into other aspects of his life. At night, he was with Eric, where he wanted to be, and he tried to convince himself that in those fun blissful crazy moments spent with Eric, nothing else mattered. But it had come time to leave. After finally convincing himself that him leaving his job would not completely destroy his or any of his co-worker’s life, Jack had sat down and composed a lengthy email to his boss about why he had chosen to step down from his current role and take on an entry level position at the company. Eric had asked him why he had chosen not to separate from the company completely. A question to which Jack had responded, _“I don’t know what I want to do with my life yet. Once I know for sure, I’ll leave.”_ Then he’d chuckled lightly to reassure Eric, who had been nodding along, but still looking rather confused _. “Maybe, I’ll go back to school. Study to be a nurse. Or a teacher.”_ Eric had pulled him in for a hug after that _. “Whatever you decide to do, I’m with you.”_

So, there they’d been the night before. Eric, sitting ramrod straight across from him at their dining room table, fully committing to the role of a harsh, accusatory boss, who seemed to take pleasure in making others feel as if their opinions and beliefs were idiotic. He and Eric had spent thirty minutes doing a mock meeting after Jack had finally caught on to what was happening.

In bed, Jack shook his head fondly as he recounted those strange thirty minutes. Sighing, he sat up and got out of bed to pull on a pair of pajama pants and a t-shirt. He went to the floor length mirror and looked at his reflection with a frown.

“At least, it’ll be over after today,” he grumbled to himself.

He still felt groggy and unenthusiastic, like he had missed hours of sleep even though he’d slept deeply and undisturbed the whole night. He needed a coffee the size of his head. Glancing at the clock, he saw that it was now almost eight. He needed to get moving. Going out to meet Eric in the kitchen, his insides warmed at the smell of coffee wafting through the hallway.

“Hey,” he said. “Breakfast ready?”

Eric turned from the counter and grinned widely upon seeing him. “You betcha.”

Jack approached the dining table to see two empty bowls with a spoons placed next to them, a carton of milk and a box of Lucky Charms sitting like a centerpiece between it all.

He chuckled. “Thanks for making breakfast.”

“Happy to do it,” said Eric, bringing over a steaming mug of coffee. “You’ll need your strength if you’re going to face that evil man today.”

As they ate, Eric would randomly hum to himself, as he read the morning paper, while Jack just sat and grumpily thought about the meeting that he was trying his best not to think about.

He felt a nudge to his foot beneath the table. Snapping out of it, he straightened in his chair and looked up at Eric.

“Hey man, what’s with the face? You look cranky. Did your cereal get soggy? You can make another bowl. We have another box.”

Jack shook his head. “Nothing. Just, I hate that I let myself get to this point. I wasted so much time, so many years being miserable, doing something I didn’t want to do.”

“Nothing’s ever a waste, dude,” said Eric. “You’re doing great. Sure, you hate what you do, but you’re working to change your job. You’re trying to figure out what you do want to do. You’re making moves. True, it didn’t happen sooner like you wish it had, but it still happened. It’s happening now, Jacky. And I’m so happy about it. I’m so happy for you.”

He reached across the table and grabbed Jack’s hand.

“How do you do it?” said Jack.

Eric pulled his hand back.

“Do what?”

“You’re right,” said Jack. “I _am_ cranky.” He crossed his arms over his chest. “And you. You’re always happy. You always see the good in things. You’re always looking on the bright side. How do you do it?”

Eric reached out over the table, palm up and made grabby fingers, signaling for Jack to take his hand. Jack didn’t hesitate to do so.

“How do you know I’m always happy?” said Eric.

Jack’s face scrunched up. “What do you mean, how do I know? It’s all over you. All the time. You radiate happiness! Every time I see you, you’re happy. Always happy. The entire time I’ve known you, you’ve been happy.”

“See?” Eric grinned. “There you go.”

“What do you mean, there you go?”

“You don’t see the connection? Ever since I’ve known you, I’ve been happy,” said Eric earnestly. “Every time you’re around me, I’m happy. Every time you look at me, I’m happy. When I wake up next to you, I’m happy. When you get home from work, I’m happy. When you video call me in the middle of the day, I’m happy. When you share your umbrella with me during an unexpected rainstorm because I forgot mine at home, I’m happy. When you help me to the couch after I’ve stubbed my toe on a barstool, I’m happy. You always say, how can I smile after hurting my foot. Dude, I’m smiling because of you. I’m so grateful for you. You make me happy. When we were roommates in college, you made me happy. You made me happy then, and you make me happy now. You think I’m always happy because that’s all you see. You see me happy all the time, because when you’re around, I _am_ happy. That’s all you see. All you’ll ever see.”

Jack let out a shaky breath, as he struggled to keep himself together. His eyes were wide and glistening. He loved Eric so much.

Across from him, Eric just laughed. “I know, man. Heavy stuff. You haven’t even finished your coffee yet.”

“You make me happy, too,” said Jack, feeling himself loosen and his body fill with indescribable joy. “You’ve always made me happy.”

Eric nodded like he already knew this.

“Now, come on. Eat up,” said Eric. “Like I said, you need your strength. Lucky Charms has the ability to cheer up even the crankiest person on earth. After breakfast, you’ll be in such a good mood that it’ll be impossible to walk into that building and into that man’s office with a frown on your face. You will look so enthusiastic and sure of yourself that it’d be impossible for him not to see things your way.” Eric pushed the box of cereal forward. “All crankiness will be gone after the first bite.”

“Oh come on,” said Jack. “I’m not that cranky. I mean, I don’t be looking that cranky, do I?”

Eric shrugged. “Not really. This morning I’d say you look only slightly cranky. I’d say 14 percent less cranky than you looked last night.”

A laugh escaped from deep within Jack’s chest and he picked up a piece of cereal that’d fallen onto the table and flicked it at him.


	2. Fancy Dinner

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A night in the life of Eric and Jack Matthews

**

Eric traipsed out of their home office for the fourth time in the past hour with a snicker on his face and his phone in his hand. He already had the camera set to ‘video’ as he approached Jack from behind.

“7:20 pm: Jack Matthews is throwing stiff noodles against the tile wall in our kitchen,” said Eric, his voice dripping with importance and severity like he was narrating a true crime TV show. “Is this witchcraft? Have the aliens finally landed? Are the body snatchers invading again? Viewers, we are witnessing some real-life Linguini-style puppeteering right now.”

Jack turned and gave him an exasperated look. “You better not be recording this! I’m serious, Eric. If I go onto your Instagram and see this, I will never cook for you again.”

Eric’s snicker remained plastered on his face. “Promise?” he said, causing Jack to throw a wet spaghetti noodle at him. “Before the night is over, I will prove that there is a rat controlling the body of this: Jack Matthews. If that _is_ his real name.”

Jack turned off the stove and left the already mushy noodles to soak in the steaming water. Eric pressed a finger to his mouth to stifle his laughter. Oblivious to Eric’s amusement, Jack picked up a stained wooden spoon and slowly stirred a thick red concoction that he had made Eric taste three times. The sauce was surprisingly edible.

“The game is afoot,” Eric said to his audience excitedly before finally ending the live stream.

Jack turned off the stove. “Will you stop fooling around? Why don’t you make yourself useful and set the table?”

Eric went to grab a couple plates from the cabinet (stopping to press a quick kiss to Jack’s cheek) and then to grab some silverware from the drawer.

“You know,” said Eric. “The sauce is pretty good. See what happens when you follow a recipe? People don’t end up with bones caught in their throat after eating pumpkin pie.”

Ignoring this, Jack served him a very generous serving of the pasta. The noodles made an audible _plop_ as they hit Eric’s plate.

“It’s alive!” Eric shouted dramatically.

Jack rolled his eyes before going to sit down opposite him.

“Joking,” said Eric, loudly, his chest shaking with laughter. “Seriously, love this. Love you. This is the best birthday ever.”

“Really?” said Jack, grinning. “I’m glad you—I wasn’t sure if I could even do it. I wanted to do something special. I mean, my original plan was just to put my lips on every part of your body, but…”

Eric’s hand froze in midair just as he had been about to take his first bite, all traces of his jovial teasing gone.

It was Jack’s turn to smirk, as he twirled his fork in the spaghetti and brought a big bite of it to his mouth.

His face twisted as he chewed, his expression looking initially hopeful, and then pleased, and then confused, and then back to hopeful, and then back to confused.

“It’s okay,” said Jack after a while. He then began to move the noodles around on his plate like a picky child who was doing their best to put off eating dinner.

Eric, having recovered from his momentary shutdown, did the same to his food.

Minutes passed with neither of them saying a word.

Soon, the food was cold, and their fancy wine forgotten.

Eric was the first to speak.

“Hey, uh…”

That, apparently, was all that needed to be said before they both stood, pushing their chairs back so swiftly that they tipped over. Next thing, they were off, hurriedly making their way to their bedroom, crashing into furniture, and then into each other.

...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! I would love to hear what you think of this, and whether you'd like to see more of these. Take care and stay safe - B

**Author's Note:**

> ...sometimes, love comes quickly 🖤
> 
> It means a lot to me that you guys liked Slightly Crazy. I am thinking about adding a drabble to this before I move on from it. Again, thank you for your support and kind words. Take care and stay safe. - B
> 
> Also, I figure everyone here is familiar with Eric's happy dance, so I thought I would include a link to one of my favorite Eric/Jack scenes instead.
> 
> https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=rcN9vkRGefI
> 
> ... until we meet again


End file.
